WRITER: Ian Brennan[SPOILERS] The songs are being squeezed into Glee in amusingly blunt or bizarre ways. I think the producers are guilty of overloading the series with tunes (there were six in this episode!), perhaps because it's such a strain coming with an hour's worth of comedy-drama.
DIRECTOR: Elodie Keene
GUEST CAST: Jessalyn Gilsig, Jenna Ushkowitz, Jonathan Groff, Idina Menzel, Iqbal Theba, Stephen Tobolowsky, Naya Rivera, Kent Avenido, Josh Sussman, Keisuke Hoashi, Heather Morris, Harry Shum Jr. & Dijon Talton
In "Funk", Jesse (Jonathan Groff) returned to Vocal Adrenaline, for no particular reason other than to upset girlfriend Rachel (Lea Michele) and fulfill his role as a villain; glee club sank into depression when they saw Vocal Adrenaline's impressive performance of Queen's "Another One Bites The Dust", forcing Mr Schue (Matthew Morrison) to come up with ways to snap them out of their collective "funk" using, ironically, "funk music"; Sue (Jane Lynch) grew increasingly egotistical and insulting, provoking Schue into humiliating his nemesis by leading her on with false romantic interest; Teri (Jessalyn Gilsig) and Schue's divorce became official; and Puck (Mark Salling) and Finn (Corey Monteith) slashed their competitor's car tires, so had to pay for the damage by getting a job at Teri's linen store.
This episode was unruly and inconsistent, particularly in how this season's Rachel/Jesse storyline developed. Jesse was brought in as the "bad boy" rival (whose talent and good-looks Rachel couldn't help falling in love with), who went undercover with New Directions on the orders of choirmaster Shelby. A perfectly fine if well-trodden setup. Then we had the expected reveal that Jesse has developed genuine feelings for Rachel, but a fun twist that Jesse's "mission" wasn't to sabotage or snoop on New Directions but to help Shelby reconnect with her daughter. Oddly, "Funk" ignored that semblance of a storyline, and took Jesse back to being the smarmy villain he was introduced as originally, making his meager development rather pointless. This switcheroo would have been more exciting if someone like Finn, Puck or Kurt (Chris Colfer) defected for a plausible reason, no? There was just no good reason for Jesse to turn on New Directions and hate Rachel enough to organize her public humiliation with an "egging". And what does Shelby think of her club mistreating her daughter, anyway? It all felt very bizarre.
There are times when Glee's cavalier attitude can be fun and refreshing (especially when it subverts teen-drama clichés, or tackles them face-on quicker than anticipated), but "Funk" was a prime example of Glee's attention deficit having a negative effect. Why should we care about characters and their relationships, if everything we learn about them can be upended and spun around on a whim?
I get the schizophrenic attitude is because producers Ryan Murphy, Ian Brennan and Brad Falchuk have different approaches to the show, and while a generally cohesive vision is maintained there are times when they unravel each other's work. Intentionally or not. Or maybe the finale loomed on the horizon and they realized they hadn't developed the Jesse/Rachel storyline effectively, so had to bite the bullet and move certain pieces into position during "Funk", no matter how awkwardly that had to be achieved?
As usual for an Ian Brennan script, the episode was full of wonderful Sue Sylvester moments. I especially loved her choice of attire when on a first date (a tracksuit accessorized with a pearl necklace!), her house being a shrine full of countless cheerleading trophies, and the fact she uses a bullhorn to communicate with her long-suffering Mexican housemaid. An oasis of good humour in an episode that elsewhere struggled to connect its dots.
7 JUNE 2010: E4/HD, 9PM
